Technical > Gadgets > I don't get why people want Tablets

I don't get why people want Tablets

An iPad is a tablet unless you're specifically speaking about Android tablets. How many of those are purchased by consumers vs companies? I'd guess a lot.

You sound a bit like my neighbor across the street from me when I was graduating high school in the early 80's that bought a computer and called me over and said "I got a computer, what do I do with it?". If you don't have a need, which it seems you don't, I can understand you wondering what to do with it.

I think the tablet is a compromise device. Sure you can carry an expensive high powered small size notebook or much less expensive netbook, an eReader like a Kindle and a some other device like an iPhone or Android phone, but that is 3 devices. What if you can get most of what you wanted in a netbook and an eReader + apps for other things such as games or your hobby? That's what a tablet is.

But since you didn't want it in the first place and it was just given to you, I guess that is why you don't really have a need.
--
Tweaked your connection? | Mail Parse | Speed Converter

I like to read and always got my books from the library. I was reluctant to switch to an e Reader but I got a deal on a Nook Color and find reading easy on it. It also has e mail and web browsing but limited apps.

So I turned it into a tablet. »[Mods] Turn Nook Color To Android Tablet and found that Android Market has a lot of apps that will let me be more productive when I'm not reading. I have a old cell phone (Nokia 3310) that has just a green LCD screen.

So a tablet lets me access the web and look up info without having to get off the couch and got sit in front of a computer or carry a laptop around.


--
Here's To You

reply to Reno
For non-business travel, I prefer my iPad over any laptop. Lighter, does what I need for travel (music, video, surfing, email), and just generally easier to travel with.

reply to Reno
I think the question can also be... what do you need a laptop for? That is, most people _don't_ need a laptop as the tablet will do everything they need it to do. Many people these days don't need complicated/nitch programs for most of their work. They need an email reader, a documents creator, a web browser, a movie player, photo program and a few others. All of those things work great on a tablet. The tablet is much smaller and usually they run for 6-8 hours without a problem.

I think for many people a tablet might not replace a laptop but I think many people have both and prefer the tablet when they don't want something as big and power hungry as a laptop.

Would I spend $800 in a tablet? Nope. But to each their own.

reply to Reno
Mine is very convenient for reading Kindle books, browsing, etc in non-traditional settings (in the car, bed, etc.).

reply to Reno
I think part of it is whether you use computers and the internet as a content creator or a content consumer.

Creator: You write, or you edit audio/video, or are making spreadsheets, or doing other productive stuff. Tablets are going to seem like a useless pain in the butt with no mouse, an on-screen keyboard, limited software and limited specs.

Consumer: you read, you watch videos, you surf the web, you listen to music, maybe a little shopping and googling. You're checking out other people's content rather than creating your own. Tablets are great for this.

As someone who does a lot of writing and audio editing I never saw the appeal of a tablet until I realized just how many people use the computer like I use a television - passive content consumption.
--
Join the DSLR Kiva team!

reply to Reno
I would never have paid $400 or more for one but got an HP Touchpad for $99 and it's pretty cool. Next time I go on vacation, I will take it instead of my laptop to keep up with email. It's certainly a lot easier to carry and for email and light web surfing, it will be just fine.

reply to Reno
Some tablets like the ep121 and the samsung 7 series tablets that range around for $1000 are actually pretty good. They are the REAL tablets for now, and then there is the axiotron modbook.

If tablets allow you to take down notes, and help you with content creation on the go. Than that is really great I believe.

reply to Sarah

reply to Reno
Because all people want to do is surf the internet, watch movies, listen to music and read ebooks.
The stupid ones pay $600 for a touchscreen only netbook like the ipad.

I for one bought a real tablet PC, an HP tm2t. It a regular laptop, but the screen is touch with a wacom pen and the screen is reversable so I can flip it around to turn it into a screen only tablet. It is perfect for writing notes.
A tm2t touch screen is useful as it runs windows 7 so it runs everything.

For some reason companies are not really making a reversible tablet pcs anymore. They are making touchscreen only netbooks like the ipad instead.
--
...brought to you by Carl's Jr.

reply to Reno

reply to Reno

reply to Reno
I have worked out that by cancelling my physical newspapers and getting them on a tablet the money I save would pay for my high end tablet within 18 months.
Then I can add monthly car magazines etc and save the wife beating up on me for the cultter the physical mags create.
On top of that I have a communications device for web browsing, emails and skype etc.
All for the weight of 1 1/4 lbs so traveling with one is so easy.

reply to Reno
Refurbed Color Nook is at buy.com this week for $135.00
Vizio 8 incher Costco $190

November 7th New mk II? Color Nook rolled out
November 9th New Transformer Prime rolled out (uses Tegra 3)
December Archos G9 10 incher with 1.5Ghz cpu rolled out

There will probably be other events in this final 2 months of the year.

reply to Reno
My 6 year old niece has an iPad. Her favorite movie at the moment is "Gnomeo and Juliet". She can take her iPad and watch it as many times as she wants without driving the rest of the family crazy - which is what would happen if it was always running on the TV.

I've noticed that she only seems to use her iPad when she's not in the mood to play with her toys or read her books or watch TV. It's not the "toy" that she immediately picks up. The type of games she plays are the hidden object games like "Hidden Expedition - Amazon", Barbie games, and all those physics games like "Angry Birds" and its clones. She's learning to read, so the inventory items in the hidden object games have to be read to her (though she is starting to recognize the names of some of the items). She is a whiz at doing pipes puzzles, spot-the-differences, jigsaws, and those puzzles where you have to fit various-shaped items into a square/rectangle. She beats me all the time at Angry Birds. It's going to be interesting to see how those skills translate when she gets into the grades where the science courses are going to involve putting them into play.
--
Patriotism is not waving a flag, it is living the ideals

I want to retire to the Isle of Sodor and ride the trains.

reply to Reno
I love my iPad 2. I am a Unix guy, programmer and DBA but I love the simpleness of the iPad. It's maintenance free. No virus non-sense to deal with and it just works. Most laptops I have used can't touch the battery life or weight of a tablet, especially the iPad.

In the past few months I really found the iPad to be very helpful. I had to make several trips to Sloan Kettering Hospital and eventually had surgery. I never would have dragged a laptop on a train with me, but a tablet it's so easy. While at the hospital the iPad really kept me entertained. The battery lasted all day and it was so entertaining to download new apps and just have some fun. I love all the free stuff. I did some Facetime calls, emails and puzzle games.

And then apps like Flipboard really make reading your favorite sites like Engadget so easy. The touch screen interface is so nice. I recently have been looking at moving, you have to try some of the real estate apps like Zillow or Trulia, it's such a huge improvement to use a touch interface over a mouse.

Tablets have there place. I don't feel it will replace a Windows PC but for some basic stuff it's way superior. I still use Quicken and Photoshop on my PC, but for everything else it's a tablet.

reply to Reno
We have a Netbook and are thinking long and hard about giving it to my mother and replacing it with an iPad2 if the opportunity ever arises. We mainly use the Netbook for surfing, checking email, some spreadsheet and word processing work, and easy access for synching the phones and cameras. In the end I doubt we will buy the iPad, instead, maybe just upgrade the Netbook with an SSD and 2GB of RAM. It's not really doing rocket science or anything so it'll probably useful for a few years more.

reply to Reno
Tablets are one of those things you either see the value in or you don't.

Personally, I don't think calling people idiots because they want tablets is constructive at all. That said:

I have an iPad 2. I have had an MSI Wind netbook, and use laptops and desktop computers nearly all day, and have an LCD in front of my face nearly every waking hour.

The iPad is effortless, lightweight, quickly accessible, always on, and has phenomenal battery life. I think of tablets as the next generation's newspapers, books, and TV. You just pick one up and do what you want, no opening a lid, turning it on and waiting for it to boot up, logging in, and having something sit on your lap. When you get up to do something else, you don't have to find a special place to lay it down (or as we do in my house, lid open and precariously set on the floor sideways). It's small and light, so I just set it on an end table or toss it on a couch cushion. It's the convenience factor.
--
"No matter how hard you push and no matter what the priority, you can't increase the speed of light."

- RFC 1925